Saving My Favorite in a Doomed World Chapter 71

「The Battery War」

 

“Hmm, there was something like this.”

 

Hwashin tilted his head.

 

It did exist, but… it was definitely a dungeon that appeared in the latter half, right when they were on the verge of annihilation. Besides, the terms ‘light’ and ‘battery’ weren’t just simple metaphorical expressions.

 

The Illusion City, the City of Light, the Batteries. The SH1 Unit had struggled quite a bit with this episode because they had to grasp every single one of those characteristics. 

 

In the first place, it’s not like I have any memories of seeing this kind of scenery in my previous life to begin with.

 

But the most important point about this dungeon, about this story, is…

 

「 Kim Daecheol. An ordinary citizen living in the Illusion City while receiving battery supplies. He had no family to protect, nor any dreams he wanted to achieve. He had nothing. To him, every day was merely a meaningless gray. 」

 

It was to ensure that Kim Daecheol safely lived to see tomorrow so that this novel wouldn’t end.

 

That ‘safely’ was the difficult part.

 

– I told you, if the living protagonist croaks and dies, it’s over.

 

「 Hugging a worn brown bag, Kim Daecheol thought. Maybe today. Should I die? Yeah, someone like me is only good for getting cursed at by society. Even if I reflect on it, my life is already in the gutter, and others probably see me as trash. I don’t even have a single friend to open my heart to. 」

 

Because the protagonist, Kim Daecheol, was a guy who lived with the words ‘I want to die’ practically glued to his lips every single day.

 

“Wow, the protagonist this time is intense.”

 

Yoo Jian said, rolling her neck in a circle.

 

Lee Suho nodded, completely oblivious to his own past.

 

As if gathering their scattered interests into one place, Hwashin threw out a question.

 

“Everyone, Kim Daecheol-ssi is all well and good, but aren’t you curious about the status windows?” 

 

Right, in this world, a status window was a different concept from the status window that appeared in <Your Hero Is Here>. In other words, it was a right one could obtain upon becoming a character in this story!

 

Entering the dungeon! Directly signified that they had successfully gained admission.

 

“Let’s open the status window!”

 

As Hwashin smiled brightly and shouted, “Status window!”, a status window finally appeared before his eyes as well.

 

[ Name: Yoo Hwashin

Residence: Illusion City

Affiliation: Aspiring Illusion City Rebel

Battery: 90% remaining. Caution at 40%, Warning at 20%. Please recharge your battery at a nearby light charging station.

Error

*Abilities exist that were not granted to this character.

*This is an error caused by a distortion. Immediate corrective action will not be taken.

*The character’s abilities are displayed numerically.

 

[ Physical: 50 ] [ Intelligence: 78 ] [ Light: Immeasurable…. (Expand) ] [ Owned Abilities: Word Command (Unknown), Prophet (Unknown), Physical Enhancement (Unknown)… ]

 

*The general stats of the corresponding city begin at 20.

*Light and Intellect are abnormally high. With these numbers, Kim Daecheol will naturally have no choice but to show interest in you! Because he is the protagonist of this story! ]

 

Is this what it feels like when a status window unfolds?

 

The corners of Hwashin’s mouth twitched upward. …It felt even better than he had thought.

 

It felt like he was satisfying his fanboy heart here, which he hadn’t been able to satisfy within <Your Hero Is Here>. Even though he had accepted the fact that he couldn’t see the status window, it was still sad that others could see it while he alone couldn’t.

 

Mueum stared at the screen intently. Here, they could even see other people’s status windows as long as they had permission.

 

“There are unnecessarily many words.”

 

“Let’s see yours too, Mueum. If it’s alright, shall we all share with each other? It’s kind of fun, too.”

 

It seemed like I only needed to be a little careful about the Prophet attribute on my status window anyway.

 

Cha Jaeha also nodded, seemingly thinking that it would be more efficient.

 

Seriously, the guy doesn’t talk much, but he’s surprisingly obedient. If he was going to be like this, why did he act that way toward Ha Cheongwon? 

 

Hwashin meticulously examined the status windows, starting with Jeong Mueum, then moving to Cha Jaeha, Yoo Jian, and Lee Suho. No one said it, but they all seemed curious about each other’s windows. 

 

While they could easily ask about each other’s abilities in <Your Hero Is Here>, they hadn’t been able to show their status windows to each other.

 

[ Name: Jeong Mueum

Residence: Illusion City

Affiliation: Aspiring Illusion City Rebel

Battery: 70% remaining. Caution at 40%, Warning at 20%. Please recharge your battery at a nearby light charging station.

Error

*Abilities exist that were not granted to this character.

*This is an error caused by a distortion. Immediate corrective action will not be taken.

*The character’s abilities are displayed numerically.

 

[ Physical: 60 ] [ Intelligence: 61 ] [ Light: 81 ] [ Owned Abilities: Gravity Manipulation (Lv.15), Strategist (Lv.10), Spatial Perception (Lv.8) ] 

 

*The general stats of the corresponding city begin at 20, and Lv begins at 5.

*Hmm! The Light attribute is quite high! You are someone who will be loved not only in the Illusion City but also in the ‘City of Enet’! You might even earn the meaningless favor of the city’s people. Yes, modern society is all about love. Please embrace them with love. ]

 

Seeing Jeong Mueum’s status window made it even clearer.

 

“Doesn’t it seem like this also shows a bit of the person’s characteristics?”

 

“Yes, I think so.”

 

Strategist. Such a skill or ability name didn’t exist for the Jeong Mueum of the original work. Jeong Mueum affirmed it as well.

 

Which meant, these characteristics were generated only in this story, in this dungeon.

 

This is because the dimension is extremely distorted. I mean, it’s not normally to this extent.

 

Yeah, yeah, I get it. If you’re only in the position to read, just stay quiet and watch.

 

“M-Mueum, you’re incredibly smart.”

 

“Right? How is both of your intelligence so high as a pair?”

 

The gazes of the remaining people naturally turned to the status window right next to them, Cha Jaeha’s.

 

[ Name: Cha Jaeha

Residence: Illusion City

Affiliation: Aspiring Illusion City Rebel 

Battery: 70% remaining. Caution at 40%, Warning at 20%. Please recharge your battery at a nearby light charging station.

Error

*Abilities exist that were not granted to this character.

*This is an error caused by a distortion. Immediate corrective action will not be taken.

*The character’s abilities are displayed numerically.

 

[ Physical: 100 ] [ Intelligence: 55 ] [ Light: 118 ] [ Owned Abilities: Fireball (Lv.20), Spontaneous Combustion (Lv.20), Explosion (Lv.16), Purgatory Sphere (Lv.11), Outlaw (Lv.4), Sovereign (Lv.1), Nagging (Lv.3) ]

 

*The general stats of the corresponding city begin at 20, and Lv begins at 5.

*The status windows are completely running wild today! Why are you elites only now receiving the compatibility judgment for the City of Enet? It’s truly astonishing. However…. Someone who has both Nagging and Outlaw together. If you become a leader, it seems you’ll be an incredible nagger. Phew, how scary! ]

 

…..

 

“What’s with ‘Nagging’ at the end.”

 

Letting out a “pfft,” Yoo Jian poked Cha Jae-ha in the ribs. Jeong Mueum also let the corner of his mouth curl up. 

 

“If it’s attached as a trait, it must be pretty severe.”

 

With his arms crossed, Cha Jaeha muttered lowly.

 

“Yoo Jian, Jeong Mueum. Be quiet.”

 

“Hahaha, this is great. Wow, the traits are even funnier than I thought.”

 

Only after smacking the crown of Yoo Hwashin’s head, who was holding his stomach and laughing, did Cha Jaeha turn his gaze to Yoo Jian’s status window.

 

“Wow, you’re quite something yourself, Noona.”

 

[ Name: Yoo Jian

Residence: Illusion City

Affiliation: Aspiring Illusion City Rebel

Battery: 70% remaining. Caution at 40%, Warning at 20%. Please recharge your battery at a nearby light charging station.

Error

*Abilities exist that were not granted to this character. 

*This is an error caused by a distortion. Immediate corrective action will not be taken.

*The character’s abilities are displayed numerically.

 

[ Physical: 111 ] [ Intelligence: 40 ] [ Light: 100 ] [ Owned Abilities: Physical Enhancement (Lv.27), Internal Strength Reinforcement (Lv.27), Mental Fortitude Enhancement (Lv.18), Assault (Lv.5), Nagging Block (Lv.1) ] 

 

*The general stats of the corresponding city begin at 20, and Lv begins at 5.

*Wow, it seems you are someone whose abilities are all concentrated in Physical and Light! Of course, your Intelligence is high too! However, it’s my first time seeing a ‘Nagging Block’ trait ability. A person like this would be the complete opposite of someone with the ‘Nagging’ trait. These two must never act on the same team! ]

 

…….

 

“Cha Jaeha, don’t laugh.”

 

“….”

 

“I said stop laughing. Hey, Lee Suho, why are you laughing! Yours, what’s yours!?”

 

Unlike the huffing Yoo Jian, Lee Suho shook his head peacefully.

 

“My status window isn’t appearing.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Why?”

 

Yoo Jian and Jeong Mueum turned their heads simultaneously, and inside Hwashin’s head, the dragon noisily added an explanation.

 

-You dragged a kid out of a dimension out of nowhere, and the record for him over there had just barely started, so you think it’d pop up properly here? He’s a kid whose placement is still so ambiguous that he’s being recorded in both books simultaneously. Tell him to wait just a little longer for his status window. The information is probably being transferred from that dimension right now. If it doesn’t appear, then it can’t be helped.

 

Hwashin summarized Riel’s lengthy explanation into a single sentence.

 

“It’s probably because Suho hasn’t been out for very long yet.”

 

Now, checking the status windows was complete. 

 

In this episode, they had to check their status windows frequently.

 

This was because of the ‘Trait’ restrictions of the City of Enet. Specifically, restrictions that were disadvantageous only to the residents of the Illusion City.

 

That was also the reason why the rebel army was raised in the Illusion City in the first place.

 

Hwashin looked down at the night view unfolding below the mountain behind the Illusion City where they were standing. In the city draped in a black cloth, a massive population was moving about, each finding their own place. Amidst the brilliantly colorful lights, the lively faces, or rather, the exhausted faces of the people could be seen.

 

Though Kim Daecheol was likely one of those exhausted ones.

 

「 “Yeah, I think today is the day.” He slowly moved his steps. His hunched back slouched even further. 」

 

“Gasp, crazy! Isn’t Mr. Kim Daecheol going to die at this rate?!”

 

Yoo Jian shouted as soon as she read the newly popped-up plotline on the window.

 

In this situation, they had to head straight for Kim Daecheol.

 

“But it’s no use if we don’t know Kim Daecheol’s location. The hologram window doesn’t tell us that either.”

 

Jeong Mueum was right. Moving without knowing the exact location would only be a waste of time.

 

The corners of Hwashin’s mouth curled up into a grin. A wicked smile hung on his face. That….was definitely not an expression a hero should make.

 

“You guys, don’t you remember?”

 

Ending with those words, Hwashin boldly unfurled his status window right in front of him with a swish.

 

Digital text over a green hologram. He liked it quite a bit.

 

Amidst the various traits written down, his finger lightly tapped on one of the abilities.

 

“Ah, right.”

 

Prophet.

 

“I have the Prophet trait.”

 

Now, as long as I have this. No matter how much of the plot I know in advance, or what I talk about.

 

“Follow me.”

 

It doesn’t matter anymore.

 

Yoo Hwashin’s laughter grew louder and louder.